Newcastle team-mates Lee Bowyer and Kieron Dyer were sent off for fighting each other today in the Barclays Premiership defeat to Aston Villa at St James' Park.

The Magpies were already 3-0 behind and down to 10 men as the wheels came off for Graeme Souness' side.

The hosts never recovered from Juan Pablo Angel's opener, and Gareth Barry added a second from the penalty spot after Steven Taylor handled on the line, for which he was sent off.

Barry added a third from the spot after Darius Vassell was fouled by Stephen Carr - before the midfield duo were dismissed for violent conduct, squaring up to one another and continuing their disagreement off the pitch. They will almost certainly be suspended for the FA Cup semi-final against Manchester United next month, and the match ended 3-0 to Villa.

Bowyer and Dyer offered grovelling apologies after the shameful end to the match. The England midfielders flanked flint-faced manager Graeme Souness at his post-match press conference, Bowyer leading the way after being invited to by Souness.

He said: "I would just like to apologise to the fans, the chairman, the managing staff, all the players and everybody that is connected to Newcastle, my family and everybody that witnessed what happened today on the football pitch. I am sincerely sorry."

Dyer added: "I will touch on the same as well. I would like to apologise to my team-mates, the manager, the chairman and the fans and everyone connected with the club as well.

"We are team-mates and we have disagreements, but we should not be fighting in front of 50,000 people. I am deeply sorry for it, especially because it is a crucial stage of the season."

The pair, who are friends, left the stage together to leave Souness to add his own thoughts after making his feelings abundantly clear in the dressing room after what he described as a "traumatic day".

Both men face three-match bans at best, and that will keep them out of the FA Cup semi-final clash with Manchester United on April 17 and severely dent the Magpies' hopes of ending their 36-year wait for a trophy, although substitute Steven Taylor, who had earlier been red-carded for deliberate handball, should miss just one match.

It was a dazed Souness who tried to explain the situation 24 hours after pulling off a major coup by persuading Alan Shearer to delay his retirement plans.

"I think it is a first for me, I have never witnessed that before," he said. "Words between players, hard words between players occur in every game of football and it is very unusual for it to lead to what happened today.

"Nobody said this job was easy. We were going along nicely and that is just going to make it even more difficult. But it will not make us take our eye off the ball.

"We have got a very hard few weeks coming up. We have slipped up in terms of points in the Premiership today and obviously equally important is the three lads being sent off, and we will miss them for whatever suspensions they get.

"But we have to remain focused. This is an important part of the season."

The astonishing bust-up occurred in the 81st-minute as Bowyer and Dyer squared up after a heated exchange and the former appeared to throw the first punch before team-mates moved in as the scrap developed.

However, Souness is confident that Dyer has a defence. "I have been told and been reassured by Kieron Dyer that he did not throw any punches today, that he was on the receiving end, and that is the road we will be going down," he said.

"I think Lee Bowyer is indefensible. I think he is guilty, as the pictures show, of throwing more than one punch and he has to accept whatever punishment comes his way.

"But Kieron, we feel, has an argument here. I have seen the incident once on television and I have been assured by Kieron that he did not throw any punches.

"But there will be internal discipline, that goes without saying."

Souness also insisted that both men have futures at St James, but admitted that they could both be on their last chance.

"I can envisage both of them playing for Newcastle again," he said. "Players like them do not come along very often. They are both top-class players.

"Without speaking to the chairman - I do not know his view on it - but I would hope he would see it like this: that if it ever happened again, that would definitely be the end for the pair of them.

"That is something that we cannot accept because the only people that they have really hurt are the customers today, the guys that have turned up, saved up all week, done without certain things to come to our football match today, and they see that going on.

"Hopefully, the chairman and the board see it that way."

Villa boss David O'Leary was delighted with the win, but steered clear of involving himself in the controversy.

"I have never seen anything like that, but that is all I am going to say about it," he said. "I do not wish it on Graeme Souness and I do not wish it on this football club.

"I have a great deal of respect for the people that are here and a great deal of respect for the fans. They are a fantastic bunch of people and that is all I am saying on that.

"Now we will talk about the game - my belief is that the best team won the game by a mile here today. We might have a disputed penalty at one end or a handball that was not or was, but let's not get kidded."